Classroom Without Walls at Balai Isabel took place on September 29-30. Students and teachers had a fun time together taking part in a huge variety of activities. We hiked Taal Volcano, played many sporting games, danced to Jai Ho, and played the Mental Amazing Race. Stewart’s People came third – not a bad effort! We came home tired, with lots of sleepy-heads on the bus.
Grade 7 students, teachers and Middle School Principal Mr. Gillespie, all get up and dance at the Flash Mob first practice to ‘Jai Ho.’ In just 45 minutes everyone was up and dancing after learning the routine taught by Ms. McCoy and Ms. Jackson. Photos and Video footage were taken by Ms. Stewart.
On Saturday 3rd September a group of volunteers from Middle School visited La Mesa Watershed for Service Learning. Despite the wet weather it was a wonderful day to be surrounded by the lush greenery. Students and teachers started work at the plant nursery. We filled bags of soil for new plants to start their growth. We moved on to plant three month old saplings and then visited the Worm Patch.
After the planting we all went on a 3km hike trek through the mud. We learnt about the different species which had been planted along the path, and most of the trees were around six years old.
Saturday Service is a great way to experience a different locale, and to be helping others, the environment and you feel great for helping out. I would encourage everyone in Middle School to make the effort to join an outing and get 
your hands dirty.
Salinlahi is the ISM Middle School Yearbook. With over 250 pages of homebase photos, CWW, Spirit Week, Sports Day, music, drama, art, literature, teams and club photos and much, much more… there is something for everyone. Club members take photos, make layouts of pages, and help put together an exciting, colorful representation of the whole school year.
We have had our first meeting, and will continue to meet every second Tuesday in the MSMC afterschool. It is not too late to join us. Talk to Ms. Stewart or Mr. Lingo if you want to be part of this awesome team.
Book Club 2011-12 has started! If you are in Grades 5 & 6 and love books, authors, reading, genre studies, reviewing and more, come and join us. We are meeting every second Monday in the MSMC. See Ms. Stewart for more details.
Meet the new crew in Stewart Homebase 2011-12. An awesome group of Grade 7 students: Francis, Devang, Jiwon, Katelyn, MJ, Soham, Anushka, Neha, Patrek, Sean, Akira and Brittany.
On Tuesday 24th May we were delighted to host a visit from the Neighborhood Readers’ Group from San Andres community. Linell and I arranged an afternoon tea and author presentation by Masha Golovakova. The visiting children were each given a copy of ‘Sasha and the Magic of the Philippines’ and Masha was more than happy to sign each book.
The MSMC afterschool Book Club has continued to meet regularly and enjoy discussions about books being read, and sharing great titles. Last meeting we looked at the latest titles to arrive in the MSMC and club members were given first privilege to borrow from these.
During the meeting this week we started a genre study, with a focus on school stories. Students explored a selection of great books all based on student life- friends, popularity, studying, extra-curricular activities and more. All students, Ms. Veron and myself included picked a book to read this fortnight, and took away a prompt sheet to help foster great discussions at the next meeting.
If anyone would like a copy of the books on this list, please email Ms. Stewart or drop by the MSMC.
During Spring Break a number of dedicated ISM teachers visited Kota Kinabalu in Malaysia to attend the East Asia Regional Council of Schools Teachers’ Conference. I attended the Pre-Conference Day for the session on WASC Accreditation Training with Marilyn George. It was a terrific day, filled with lots of detail, and I am keen to attend a school visit.
The Keynote Speakers at ETC were terrific, in particular, Geoff Green. He spoke about taking students to Antarctica and the Arctic to learn through a hands on experience about the wildlife, science, history, environmental issues and much more. He was inspiring and engaging to listen to.
I attended many sessions prepared by teachers, librarians, authors and administrators from schools across Asia. I most enjoyed the session on Book Trailers and feel encouraged to create my own, and then work with students on this project.
The Social Events were well planned and brought everyone together. We saw local costumes, dancers and even got up on stage to shoot balloons with a blow-pipe. A great conference in a spectacular location.
Middle School has recently participated in a second round of fun dress-up days for Spirit Week in March.
Monday – Character Day – I dressed up as Bob Marley, others came dressed in their Disney character t-shirts, and others had pop star t-shirts.
Tuesday – Twins Day – Ms. Diaz and I dressed up as twins, and all over the school there were groups of students and pairs dressed in matching outfits.
Wednesday – Stripes & Sunglasses – A very popular day to dress up. The outfit was easy to find in a wardrobe, and throw on a cool pair of shades and you’re set.
Thursday – Pajama Day – Always a successful day in the Middle School. Students put together cute, comfortable pajamas, and accessorized with slippers, dressing gowns and stuffed toys.
Friday – Casual Clothes Day – A relaxing end to the week, in which faculty and students alike put on their favorite pair of jeans. As always it is the most well participated of all the Spirit Week Days.
Ms Stewart